


'cause i don't wanna dance alone

by Anonymous



Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - No SHIELD (Marvel), F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-12-20
Updated: 2016-03-06
Packaged: 2018-05-07 23:30:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,795
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5474549
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Grant Ward has a plan: to bring Kara as his date to the wedding and show his ex-girlfriend that he's over her. And if it makes her jealous in the process, then the mission has been accomplished.</p><p>Love doesn't always go according to plan.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. let's not give the game away

**Author's Note:**

  * For [thequeenofokay](https://archiveofourown.org/users/thequeenofokay/gifts).



> Fic title from Don't Wanna Dance Alone by Fifth Harmony. Chapter title from Please Don't Say You Love Me by Gabrielle Aplin.

While every other attendee enters the church, Kara and Grant sit in the car, going over the game plan. Kara folds the wedding invitation over and over again in her hands, turning a piece of beautifully embossed cardstock proclaiming the union of Jemma Simmons and Will Daniels into nothing more than a piece of scrap paper.

"I still think Raina would have been the better choice for this," Kara says. "You guys have been best friends since she opened up her flower shop right next to your vet clinic. I think Thomas and Rosie were rooting for you two to get together."

"Raina already has two boyfriends." Grant tells Kara.

"That's what I meant - you should have joined her harem." Kara jokes, knowing fully well that Raina's love life was not harem-like in the slightest. She can see Grant almost laugh. "I'm sure Trip and Lincoln wouldn't mind having someone like you in their group."

"Let's just go over the plan."

"Right. We were introduced by your brother, who is my best friend from college, a couple of years ago and we've been good friends ever since."

"The only part that's real."

"A month ago, you told me that you liked me, and we've been going on casual dates. But since we didn't want to ruin our friendship, we haven't made it official anywhere. On our first date, we went ice skating, with Mexican afterward. It was then where you found out that I can eat the spiciest thing in the entire world without feeling anything. Is that right?" Grant nods. "Then let's go."

Grant gets out of the car and runs around to open the door for Kara. She gets out and he holds out his hand for her.

Grant has to catch his breath when he sees Kara step out of the car. Sure, he saw her in the dress and in full hair and makeup when he picked her up this morning. But now, the sunlight hits her in such a way that she looks like a goddess. She looks so different from the girl he sees at game night with Thomas and Rose every week, with disheveled hair and dark circles after a sleepless nights and long days as a history teacher.

She closes her door, takes his hand, and brings him back to reality. They walk over and into the church.

As luck would have it, the first thing they see is the maid of honor coming towards them.

"Skye!" Grant exclaims, feigning surprise at seeing his ex girlfriend.

"Daisy Johnson." Kara says at the same time, under her breath. Grant and Kara look at each other and realize that they really should have discussed who the ex girlfriend Kara was asked to impress today really was. Instead, Kara grabs his arm and leans on hi like they're in love.

"It's so good to see you." Skye/Daisy says. Suddenly, her phone rings and she takes it out, quietly cursing. "Sorry, the bridge calls." She waves them both goodbye and leaves to deal with Jemma. Kara lets go to Grant and turns to him.

"You didn't tell me your ex was _Daisy Johnson_." Kara says.

"I didn't think it mattered. Back when we dated, she was Skye. She wasn't that girl that went missing all those years ago, finally reunited with her parents." Grant says, quoting an article he remembers reading with Thomas the other day.

"Well, I can see why you're not over her. She's really pretty."

"Who says I'm not over her?"

"You wouldn't have asked me to be your fake date if you were." Kara says. She smiles and Grant smiles back. It's a wordless confirmation that everything is okay between them. She takes his hand and they walk to their seats.

They're seated in the middle of the church, behind all the close friends and family but in front of all the distant acquaintances and coworkers that weren't necessarily friends. Kara sees Leo Fitz standing at the front, helping Will greet all of the front row attendees. Kara thinks about what a strange situation this is. She only knows him and the bride from that one time she went out for drinks with Grant's friends, approximately a few months after she met him, and their coworker friends from Shield Corp. She remembers talking to Bobbi and Lance that day, two of Jemma's closest friends after Fitz and Skye, and she remembers how they had a long running bet with another friend of theirs, Mack, on when Jemma and Fitz would get together. Back then, Grant's relationship with Skye was nearing its end after being a long distance couple for several months. She'd been transferred to Shield Corp's New York Hub, and he was here, trying to make it work.

Kara finds it funny how things ended up, with Jemma marrying a former astronaut and her here, pretending to be Grant's girlfriend so that he seems over Skye.

The wedding march begins playing, and Kara sees Fitz exit and leave Will at the altar. A few minutes later, he and Skye enter with the rest of the bridesmaid and the groomsmen. They all walk down the aisle in perfect uniform. Then, comes the ring bearer and the flower girl.

Everyone in the church stands up when Mr. Simmons leads Jemma in, looking more beautiful than anyone Kara has ever seen in her entire life. She's glowing and she looks like she can't get down the aisle fast enough.

As she reaches the altar, she locks eyes with the groom. Kara doesn't really know either of them, but she feels like she is going to cry at all the love in the air.

She leans her head on Grant's shoulder as the happy couples says their vows and kiss each other like there is no one else in the world.

She wonders if she'll ever love anyone like that. She looks at Grant, and she knows that he is wondering the same thing too.


	2. look into your eyes and the sky's the limit

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kara receives a revelation.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> happy birthday melissa, you beautiful tropical fish.

The reception takes place in a large restaurant not too far from the church where Jemma and Will became Mr. and Mrs. Daniels-Simmons. As everyone mingles and dances, Kara wastes no time in taking advantage of the open bar.

As she sips on her fourth drink, Lance Hunter comes up next to her and orders one of his own.

"Hey... Lance. It is Lance, right?" Kara asks, her words slightly slurred.

"Whoa mate, how many drinks have you had?"

"Not enough."

"Relationship issues?" Lance asks. But before Kara can answer and tell him that she and Grant are perfectly happy, he begins waxing poetic about his love life. "...I know how you feel. Used to do this all the time back whenever Bobbi and I fought."

"You dated?" Kara asked, almost choking on the drink from the information. True, she doesn't know either of them all too well, but she never thought they would get together at all.

"For a little while. Didn't really work out."

"What happened?"

"I was a human. She was a hell-beast." Kara laughs. Despite barely knowing Bobbi, she knew that Lance was heavily exaggerating.

"It couldn't have been that bad."

"Well you haven't lived with her."

"I guess some people just aren't meant to be together." Kara says. Her gaze slips away from Lance and towards her date. Grant is mingling and talking and looking really good in his suit. Not for the first time, Kara wonders if there is such thing as meant to be.

She quickly pushes that thought away. After all, she and Grant are friends. Really good friends. There is nothing in the entire world that would make her want to risk their friendship for anything. She doesn't even like him romantically.

"Well, for what it's worth, we all that you and Grant'd make a nice couple." Lance says before departing with his drink.

And maybe it's hope, or alcohol, or pure foolishness, but Kara finishes her drink, walks over to Grant, and pulls his away from a conversation with Phil Coulson.

"Thank you." Grant says. "Though you could have whisked me away before he ever saw me."

"I was busy getting drunk. It's not my fault your ex's surrogate dad hates you." Grant laughs and Kara tugs on his arm. "Now let's go dance."

"I hate dancing."

"Skye's watching, and _you're never gonna get her back if you don't make her jealous first_." Kara says.

"I don't want her back."

"Then what do you want?" Kara asks. It's a question that sends both she and Grant spiraling.

Grant doesn't know what he wants. He knows that he cared for Skye. He knows how heartbroken he was when she left him. He knows that he asked Kara to be his date for a reason. He knows that he wanted to prove that he was okay to Skye, to everyone who thought he was a lost puppy, to himself. He knows that he loves Kara. He just doesn't know in what way.

Kara knows what she wants Grant to say. She wants him to say "I want you, Kara Lynn Palamas". She wants him to call her his girlfriend and mean it. She wants him.

Kara doesn't get an answer. So, she drags in onto the dance floor. Together, they are a mess of broken edges and awkward limbs and offbeat souls. But something, these two mismatched puzzle pieces lose themselves in the music.

For a moment, there is no Skye. There is just them. And as the world fades away, Kara sees Grant smile. It's a smile she's memorized, a smile that rarely appears but is one of the most beautiful things she's ever seen. It's a smile that grows wider every spin he spins her.

She wants to kiss that stupid smile off of his face.

She kisses him. She uses her high heels to her advantage and she crashes her lips against his. For a split second, she thinks she's made a grave mistake. But then Grant kisses her back and Kara can almost hear fireworks going off in the back of her mind.

When they break apart, Kara doesn't know how to decode the way Grant looks at her. She turns away and looks behind her, at Skye, who has just seen her ex boyfriend kiss his date in the middle of the dance floor. She turns back to Grant, who just has this dumb look on his face that he always gets when he's surprised or confused.

She thinks she knows what he's going to say to her. "You're a really great actress, Kara." "You're the best fake date I've ever had, Kara".

She doesn't let him speak. Instead, she tenderly takes his hand and takes him away from the dancefloor.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter title from Hamilton's Helpless.

**Author's Note:**

> Skye is called Skye in this fic because I originally began plotting and writing this fic long before season three even began.
> 
> a special thanks to melissa for supporting me and this fic so much!
> 
> tumblr: leotitz
> 
> twitter: rileymctthews


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